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20
AEW
Airships are back in fashion.
Often used as advertising
vehicles, they also frequently
appear at all kind of events—
from Olympic Games to Royal
weddings. But more serious
roles are needed if the airship
industry is to thrive. The US
Navy's intention to reintroduce
airships as maritime surveil
lance vehicles has, therefore,
aroused much interest. Karen
Walker reports.
In 1963 the US Navy retired its four massive Goodyear ZPG-3W maritime surveillance airships, and thus ended
its long history of airship operations. The
airship industry went into the doldrums.
The relationship looks set to be renewed
in the 1990s. The USN has started a
programme which could mark the return
of airships to the Naval Air Fleet. If the
project is followed through, the impli
cations for the airship industry in general
are wide. All of the companies now eagerly
submitting their proposals for the Naval
Airship Programme (Nasp) recognise the
potential for developing large, civil vari
ants after winning a lucrative military
contract which will fund the building of a
prototype. Small blimps may have estab
lished themselves as alternative adver
tising vehicles, or as carriers of small
numbers of sightseers, but the Nasp
project could lead the way for a return of
the large passenger-carrying airship.
On August 4 the Naval Air Develop
ment Centre (NADC) at Warminster,
Pennsylvania, issued its Request for
Proposals. During the 45 days response
time, the major companies expected to bid
are Goodyear Aerospace, Boeing Military
Airplane Company, and Westinghouse
teamed with Airship Industries. Last year
each of the competitors was awarded a six-
month contract worth $650,000 to assess
the practicalities of operating a large
airborne radar system for airships,
primarily to detect sea-skimming missile
threats beyond the reach of shipboard
radars. Study contracts worth $300,000
each were also awarded to Hughes
Aircraft, Westinghouse, and RCA to
develop the radar system.
After considering the resulting studies,
the NADC decided to continue with its
venture. Although the Navy remains
vague in its description of what is planned,
it is thought to be interested in purchasing
up to 75 airships, possibly in the 70,000m
class. Under American law at least two
prototypes will have to be built, and they
will compete until the final winner is
FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL, 16 August 1986